Personas and Death Gods
by pokecharmer007
Summary: Five weeks after Akie had left Yasoinaba and a tragic accident had happened, she was moved to a place called Karakura Town to settle down. But what she didn't know is that she instantly attracted unwanted attention of the supernatural kind. Now she has to fend off the monsters that plagued the town while meeting the strange but unique residents there.
1. Chapter 1

**After rewatching Persona 4 the Animation and Persona 4 Golden gameplay, I can't helped but notice the similarity between the two.**

 **In Persona 4, they tell us that a Persona is a manifestation of a person's personality, referred to as a "mask" for an individual to use to face hardship. Shadows, on the other hand, are malevolent manifestations of one's inner thoughts.**

 **In Bleach, a Zanpakuto is the reflection of a Shinigami's power and soul, and sentient beings unto themselves. Hollows are not exactly the same with the Shadows but Inner Hollows like Hollow Ichigo are. They're pretty much the dark side of the Shinigami's soul. And, if following Hollow Ichigo's example, they were Hollow-turned Zanpakuto Spirits.**

 **So when I put these two side by side, I realized they do have similar concept which is why I wrote this story. Not sure how it will turn out though.**

 **Also the OC here is from a previous story; Persona 4 Golden: My True Self. So you can pretty much say it's a crossover sequel to that. But can be read on its own.**

 **Also for those who had been Favoriting, Reviewing and Following 'The Mirage Prince of Tennis', I want to thank you so much for that. To be honest, I never thought the story would garner this much popularity considering it's a Slash fic. Though I'm so sorry if I hadn't update it since the next chapter is still under construction as I sucked at writing tennis matches that aren't canon so it might take a while.**

 **While on the subject, how do you like my OC from that story, Masahiko?**

 **Comment in the reviews.**

* * *

~Chapter 1: The New Student~

 _Some people believe in evil spirits, and some don't._

 _But people's individual beliefs have little to do with reality._

 _Behind buildings on dimly lit nights and within lonely, abandoned structures hidden from the moonlight... strange beings lurk in the shadows._

 _People with strong spiritual energy can see them, but most people live peacefully without ever noticing them._

 _Focus your eyes on the darkness._

 _You should be able to see them - the strange beings that live in the darkness..._

 **~X~**

"Hey, Ichigo!" Asano called as he flung himself to the orange-haired teen who clothes-lined him right on the neck. The goofy boy fell to the ground, hurting but still alive. Mizuiro walked by, ignoring the downed boy and greeted the teen in his normal way as they entered their classroom, effectively leaving Asano behind.

"Hey, Ichigo. Have you heard?" Tatsuki asked as they headed for their seats. When the boy gave her a confused look, she continued, "Someone said that the third years recently have a transfer student joining them just a week ago."

He raised a brow at that. While it's normal and common for transfer students to come in the first and second years, it's not the same for the third years since they're all preparing for future entrance exams. Either this one is very smart, or very bold.

"Oh, I heard about that!" Chizuru butted in. "I also heard that she's very anti-social and very cold towards anyone. She's even said to have a very haughty attitude to her."

"That's not true!" Surprisingly, Orihime cut in. "She's actually very nice and kind!"

"What, you met her, Inoue?" Ichigo asked, to which she nodded.

"She helped me once when I accidentally dropped my groceries just yesterday!" Orihime said as she reminisced the event.

 _Orihime hummed a simple tune as she exited the supermarket. She had just finished shopping for her dinner. "Alright! I've got my bananas, apples, tomatoes, teriyaki sauce, red bean paste, onions, strawberry jam, spring onions, celery, garlic and ice cream! All to make my special deluxe dinner!" But just as she was about to walk back to her apartment, the bag ripped open, causing all of the produce to fall to the ground and start rolling away. "Ah! My dinner!"_

 _While chasing a runaway onion, she didn't notice another person helping to pick her grocery up and putting them into a new plastic bag. Orihime frowned, sad that she won't get her dinner when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw something white. Moving back a bit, she saw it was a plastic bag being held by a girl._

 _The girl has fair-skin, even fairer than hers with long silky platinum-blonde hair and pretty amber eyes. The orange-haired girl tried to remember if she had seen the blonde around. She would have since not many people have blonde hair in Karakura Town._

 _Realizing she had been staring at her, Orihime quickly took the bag and bowed a few times, "Thank you very much!"_

 _The girl simply smiled, "It's no problem."_

 _The girl then offered to walk her home since it's fairly late and it's not safe for a girl to home by herself. Orihime readily agreed and they walked down the streets. "U-Um, are you new here?" She asked._

 _"As a matter of fact, yes. I just moved here and started school one week ago." The girl replied._

 _"Which one?"_

 _"Karakura High."_

 _Orihime brightened up, happy that she's in the same school, "Oh, I study there as well. Inoue Orihime, a second year!"_

 _The blonde's eyes widened a bit as she smiled, "Well, that makes you my junior then. Amamiya Akie, a third year." This surprised the orange-haired girl who then panicked since it's her first time talking to a senior. The older girl just laughed, "No need to be so formal. I'm not one for formalities."_

 _This calmed the younger girl down. The two then talked for a bit; Well, it's more of Orihime doing all the chatting while Akie did the listening. They only stop when they reached the apartment._

 _"Thank you so much again, Akie-san."_

 _"It's my pleasure. I'll see you at school then, Orihime-san."_

"...And that's how I met her. Though I didn't see her today at all." Orihime pouted a bit, to which Tatsuki petted her head.

"Well, she is a senior so she must be busy." Tatsuki suggested.

"I see." Came a voice from behind Ichigo. Said boy flinched away to see Rukia who had a serious expression on her face and her arms crossed over her chest.

"Rukia?! When did you get here?!" The orange-haired teen exclaimed, which was ignored when his other friends greeted her. To which she greeted them back in her girly act.

Ichigo could only sigh, though he wondered why Rukia was so serious about the new senior?

"Ichigo." Said boy turned to her as she whispered. "Later, I need to talk to you." If he were anyone else, he might have thought she wants to confess to him. But judging by the look she threw at him, it's not laughing matter.

 **~X~**

Akie sighed as she looked over her new hometown from the school's rooftop. A small city with an average-sized population, just like Yasoinaba. Her heart clenched when she thought back on the friends she had left behind before a sudden comforting warmth enveloped her. She smiled in bliss as she felt the Social Links she had with her friends gave their support and comfort to her.

She was surprised that she and her friends still has their Persona powers, even though the TV World is no longer a threat or Igor had ended their contract. But it seems they can still grow and change. At least she can still fuse Personas, even without Igor's help and she can still keep her old Social Links. She didn't want to think if she had to start new ones when moving into a new town, while leaving the ones she had worked so hard to bond with.

Though she didn't mind the people here (Some of them, at least) like Orihime. A friendly but slightly clumsy young girl who she had met yesterday, though if Rise were to see her assets, she would be so damn jealous. Hopefully, if she gets the chance to introduce them to each other, the idol doesn't try to grind the poor girl out of every secret of her success.

She felt her pocket vibrating and took out a light-gold Sharp Aquos phone from the pocket. Looking at her screen to see who is calling, she smiled before sliding to answer.

"Yosuke, what's up?" She asked.

What she failed to notice was a large shadow figure looming over her, yellows eyes gleaming with hunger, waiting for the right moment to strike before dive-bombing.

 **~X~**

"Wait, what do you mean?!" Ichigo exclaimed as they stood at a secluded corridor.

"I meant what I said, Ichigo. For the past one week, there had been a spike of Hollow appearances and sudden decreases of them as well." Rukia explained as she took out her Denreishinki and showed the screen to him. There were a blinking dot to signify a Hollow but as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared, not giving him enough time to discern the location.

"It better not be Ishida again!" Ichigo growled. After what happened last time with the Menos Grande.

Rukia shook her head. "No, it's not. The signature is different and that's what's bothering me."

"Why is that?" Ichigo raised a brow.

Rukia shook her head as she pocketed the device. "The signature is neither a Quincy nor a Shinigami. It's actually a Human's."

"So, you're saying that someone in town has been slaying Hollows this whole time?" Rukia nodded. Ichigo groaned as he ruffled his hair. "Great, just what we need..."

"Also, there's another thing that's actually surprising." Rukia added. "Apparently, the Hollows are being purified instead of being destroyed."

"So this someone is not only human but has Shinigami powers as well?" The orange-haired teen asked.

"I'm not certain. If we can only find this person, we'll be able to find some answers." Rukia muttered. Ichigo was about to say something when they heard footsteps coming down the stairs near them. They turned to find a senior with long blonde hair and amber eyes. Ichigo then concluded that this is the rumored transfer student everyone had been talking about. I mean, there aren't many people in school who has blonde hair.

"Oh, hello." The blonde greeted once she noticed them. They greeted back in return and stepped aside to let her through. As she walked by, she paused mid-step before turning to the two. "...You two wouldn't happen to be friends of Orihime-san, right?"

Ichigo blinked before nodding, "That's right. We're classmates of hers."

Akie smiled, "That's great. I actually wanted to invite her to eat with me during lunch break but I forgot to ask which class she was in."

"Inoue said that she hasn't seen you." Ichigo said. "Do you want to see her?"

The blonde nodded, "If it's not a bother to you." Then she froze as she looked out the window before she quickly said, "Well, let's get going. Lunch break is about finish."

Ichigo raised a brow at the behavior before turning to look out the window. It could be his imagination but he swore he saw a white snowman wearing a dark-blue jester's hat and collar with arms and legs punching the living daylights out of a Hollow before disappearing when it knows the Hollow's gone and Ichigo was watching.

He rubbed his eyes before looking back out to see nothing. Either he needs his eyes checked or something's going on.

 **~X~**

Akie sighed as she glanced behind at the empty street before continuing her walk back home. She'll admit, they're a very persistent bunch, ones that refuse to give up despite the countless times she eluded them. But hey, she was one before so she's got no say.

She was in a happy mood after meeting Orihime again who introduced her classmates to her. Unique could be the word to describe every one of them but when she laid eyes on the girl she had met along with the orange-haired scowling teen, she stopped herself from gasping as she stared at the white-clad woman floating beside the petite girl.

If anything, she would have thought she was looking at her Yuki Jyorou if said Persona was not in her soul. The woman stared at her with curious eyes before the blonde averted her amber ones to look at the other students, though she can still feel her eyes. For a spirit who could be snow personified, she has a very intense stare.

Now that happy mood is gone due to the presence that kept stalking her, which made her want to sic her more canine-like Personas on them.

Ever since she first arrived in Karakura Town, fate didn't even give her a chance to settle down before it threw a freaking monster right at her face. Though she wondered what they were. They sort of resemble Shadows except they were... less variety of them than the ones she had encountered back in Yasoinaba. Heck, there was one time she fought a freaking gundam-lookalike. Here, they all have the same features: black bodies with boney-white masks. And apparently, could speak too.

Excluding the ones that came out of her friends and the Sagiris, she had never seen talking Shadows before unless grunts, shrieks and baby gurgles counted as talking.

"And I just fought one..." She mumbled as another of those monsters, this time in the shape of a giant boar, came charging at her. The monster didn't let out a squeal before it became enveloped with fire, mere inches away from the blonde who didn't spare a glance as it disintegrated into nothing. "If I had known this town is over-ridden with these monsters, I wouldn't have ask to move here anyways. Hopefully there's no 'god' out to take over the world..." She muttered as she scratched behind Cerberus's ears, getting a soft growl in return before he returned back to her soul.

"Now then..." She then turned back to the seemingly empty street. "How long are you going to stalk me?"

Out from the shadows came a man wearing a striped dark green and white bucket hat and a black haori with white diamonds on the hem. "How mean. To say I was stalking." The man said as he hid his grin behind his opened fan. "Though I'm surprised you could sense me."

She scoffed as she fully turned to him. "Is there something you need?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just a harmless shopkeeper walking by." The man jovially said as he snapped his fan shut. "I was just out for a walk. Cooping inside the shop is bad for my health, you know?"

She would have took him at face-value if not for the fact she's already experienced with lies and deception. Not to mention the crimson-clad lady floating beside him. If the Yuki Onna-like spirit is elegance and beauty personified, then this one is akin to ferocity and majestic lethality combined. The woman resembles those regal queens of China, except without the excessive hair ornaments and a simple red veil that covers only half her face. She could faintly see the intense gray eyes past the veil.

The crimson spirit must have sensed that she was staring at her since she tilted her head with curious-filled interest flashing in her vaguely-seen eyes.

Akie quickly averted her eyes to stare at the shady 'shopkeeper'. "I see. Well, I hope you enjoy your walk. If you'll excuse me." With that, she walked away, leaving the man and his spirit on the streets. She hoped to whatever god that she doesn't clash with him; better yet, he's not an enemy. With all the regal majesty look the woman had going on, the blonde could feel the compressed bloodlust.

She shivered, definitely not someone she wants to fight.

The man grinned again as he watched the mysterious yet unique specimen walked away. "Looks like we have an interesting one."


	2. Chapter 2

~Chapter 2: To Soul Society We Go!~

Remember the last time she wanted to sic her canine-like Personas on her stalker? Well, it came back with reinforcements. While she can get used to being chased by persistent Shadows when her group wanted to escape whatever dungeon they were training in, it's a whole lot different feeling when being followed by a human. She glanced at the corner of her eye when the corporal form of Pixie pointed out the presence that is following them. She could even see the more protective Personas brandishing their weapons, wanting to cut the person who dares to stalk their mistress.

It had been going on for almost a week, and not once had a day gone by without her being warn of that presence. What put her on edge though is that the presence is a different person each day; some days is a large man with a braided mustache, other days find a young boy while a few times was a young girl.

'Is there a stalking club somewhere that I didn't know?' She thought as she calmed her Personas down. 'Now I know how Kanji felt when we followed him...' She sighed and walked off. As she turned a corner, she stayed there and waited, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, for her 'stalker' to appear.

"Is there really something you need, Mr. Shopkeeper?" She asked as she turned to the man she had met that day. She briefly glanced at the crimson spirit before staring back at the man who have the nerve to look sheepish for a moment.

"Well, I didn't think you would notice." He snapped that annoying fan open.

"I may have a lot of patience but I don't have that much when I'm being stalked for a week. So I'm going to be very blunt." She said as she pushed off the wall. "What the hell do you want?"

She could feel the hidden smirk behind the fan as he snapped it close and spoke in his jovial tone. "Straight to the point, just like him." He laughed but stopped when he narrowly dodged the roundhouse kick aimed for his head. "And violent too."

"I repeat, what do you want from me?" Her tone is quiet but even a stupid person could tell the hidden anger and irritation in her tone.

The man stayed silent for a while before tilting his bucket hat, further shadowing his eyes. "Well then, if you insist. I require your assistance with something."

The blonde raised a brow, "And that is?"

"Tell me, miss. What do you think of the afterlife?"

 **~X~**

Akie ran a hand through her hair as she digested what she had heard. Fate sure really love to -for a lack of better word- dick with her. As if stopping a goddess from turning the world into Shadows isn't bad enough, they have to shove freaking death gods, Hollows and a place in the afterlife called 'Soul Society' right into her face. She's pretty sure her lifespan would be drastically cut down once all of these are done... As if it hadn't been cut down enough.

She had been given a crash course about Shinigami and Hollows and the like, including why they need her help. Long story short, Rukia committed a taboo according to Shinigami Law and had been sent back to Soul Society to await execution. Ichigo then decided to infiltrate said place to rescue her but needs to build back his Shinigami power to do so. While this has been going, the man (Urahara Kisuke, as he's named) went around looking for potential help to aid the infiltration. And that's why he came to her since Rukia had mentioned some interesting things about her.

"From what I heard, ever since your arrival to Karakura Town, Hollow activities had been strangely increasing and decreasing at the same time. There had been instances where she told me that she sometimes saw strange creatures fighting the Hollows. Sometimes human, other times animals." Urahara said. "Might I ask what those are?"

The blonde raised a brow, "What makes you think I'm responsible?"

All he did was smile. Automatically, she shifted her gaze to the crimson lady who had been floating quite languidly at the side, looking at the sky. If the spirit was anyone, she would have yawn in boredom. She then shifted back to the man, she wouldn't be surprised if the crimson lady told him that she could see her. At the same time, she will be since the one she knows didn't tell her mistress about her secret. Even though she didn't say it's a secret. She, at some point, had talked to the Yuki Jyorou-like spirit during one time.

 _Akie was invited by Orihime to have lunch with them and they were on the rooftop, eating and chatting with each other when she almost choked on her rice as the white lady appeared before her when Rukia was talking to Orihime and Ichigo._

 _~Ah, my apologies. I thought you wouldn't see me.~ The lady said as she bowed gracefully._

 _The blonde quickly drank water and waved off the worry from Orihime, "I just choked on my food, that's all. Nothing to worry about." She said, both to her junior and to the spirit. Once the orange-haired girl turned away, the blonde senior glanced at the snow lady while giving a nod before turning to Rukia who was busy shouting at Ichigo about something._

 _~She cannot see me,~ The woman piped up again, a frown adorned on her face that is both melancholy and lonely. ~At least, not now.~_

 _She raised a brow and whispered, "Why not? You're a part of her, right?"_

 _~Yes, but after an... incident, she has lost the power to communicate with me. Even though she's slowly building it back up, it's not enough to establish the link.~_

 _Akie couldn't helped but feel sorry for her. She can somewhat relate; Sometimes the Shadows she had fought would seal her Personas, and let me tell you, it's not a good feeling. It's like having a huge hole in your chest with no ways to fix it. That's why she hated fighting those Shadows, and why she hated the silence sometimes._

 _Silence may be golden, but she'll take speech anytime if it was that painful._

 _"I'm sure you'll talk to her again." Akie assured. "By the way, I never got your name. Mine's Amamiya Akie."_

 _The woman smiled, looking brighter than before, and floated a little higher. ~I am Sode no Shirayuki, Rukia-sama's Zanpakuto. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Amamiya-san.~_

 _"Pleasure's mine." Akie nodded, not even questioning the Zanpakuto part._

After that, Akie had never spoke to her again. Granted, they did see each other but Shirayuki (As Akie nicknamed her, much to the Zanpakuto spirit's amusement, since her name is so long) made the effort to not talk to her in public, which is most of the time since they only saw each other during school hours. Come to think of it, the last time she saw Shirayuki was a week and a half ago, the same time Rukia suddenly disappeared. Strangely, none of Rukia's classmates (excluding Orihime, Ichigo, Chad and Ishida) remembers her, as if she hasn't been studying with them the last month.

"I'm not surprised that you didn't notice your raging Reiatsu." Urahara finally said.

Earlier, the man had given a run-through what Reiatsu, Reiryoku and even Reishi meant. So he's saying that her spiritual pressure is unstable? Should that be a good thing or a bad thing?

"Your Reiatsu is very peculiar. It has the same feel as a normal human should have but I can sense different blends of others as well. 50? 100? No, could be 1000..." Urahara muttered. "It's almost as if an abundance of souls all joined together into one single individual." At this, Akie flinched. She knew he was talking about her Personas. Hey, she's the Wild Card; She represents the number 0, endless possibilities, limitless potential. What do you expect? "At the same time, those strange creatures all emitted similar Reiatsu to yours. So I wonder, how do you control them?"

"...I don't. They just come to me." Is her answer. What was she to say? Oh, you know, try to face your Shadow self which is the evil manifestations of your inner thoughts that spill out your deep dark secrets?

Even Urahara's story seems more believable! ...And that's saying something.

"Anyways, how is Kurosaki-kun doing?" Akie asked, cleverly dodging the question. Though judging by the gleam in his eyes, she knows he's not done asking.

"Oh, he's there. Just have to hear his Zanpakuto's voice and we'll be all good." The 'for now' was left unsaid but she know it's there.

 **~X~**

You know, at first Akie thought that seeing people's manifestation of their souls was cool in a way. Right now, she's cursing it.

 _~Girl! Pay attention to what I'm saying!~_

She sighed before turning to the crimson lady, "I heard you, Hime. But you should know by now I can't just talk to you on a whim. People might check me to the nearest mental asylum."

Benihime, or Hime as she nicknamed her, was pretty much the total opposite of Shirayuki. While the snow lady was calm and patient, Hime is bossy and demanding. And at times, temperamental when things don't go her way. She really took 'spoiled brat' to a whole new level.

Ever since she agreed to help Urahara out in his shop, the Zanpakuto spirit would follow her wherever she goes. She would have spoke to her like she did with Shirayuki but she was beaten to the punch when Hime spoke to her first... by demanding that she talk to her. She would have done so without the whole 'demanding' part. Hime had already know that she can see her, and possibly the other Zanpakuto spirits that loiter around the shop like Tessai's who tend to stick to the shadows more often than not.

The blonde had asked her why she didn't told her wielder, to which she scoff and said _~Do I look like a babysitter?! Kisuke can figure that out by himself! Even we spirits have our secrets, you know!~_

Tessai's Zanpakuto spirit -she has yet to learn his name- was the same, keeping mostly to himself. Well, the fact that he resembles a ninja with the black garb and the scarf that almost covers his head could be the reason.

Right now, she's watching Ichigo trying -and failing miserably- at achieving Shikai, or Initial release. She could have watch with the others down at the ridiculously big basement -that, for some reason, is decorated like a partially forested desert wasteland with cliffs and such- but thought against it as she's sure her junior wouldn't want his senior to watch him get his ass handed to him.

Besides, she has a great view up at the trapdoor and no one should be able to hear her from here, especially with all the explosions going on downstairs.

"Besides, it seems Kurosaki-kun is going to get it this time." She said as she watched the semi-transparent outline of a man draped in all black. "Hmm, that's surprising. I was thinking a giant black wolf or something. It seems to fit him more."

 _~Not all Zanpakuto would turn out as you think. We are, after all, manifestations of your souls so we take the form that you're closely related to or sometimes you wished to have.~_ Hime explained.

"Hmm, that would explain why Urahara-san has a Zanpakuto like you." Akie flippantly said, ignoring the bristle from the crimson lady. "Does that mean you're a manifestation of his inner thoughts? Or his past self?"

 _~...A bit of both, actually.~_ Hime said.

Akie was about to say more when the whole shop started shaking. She would have fall into the basement if Hime hadn't held onto her. She turned to the battle before breaking out a smile. "Looks like Kurosaki-kun finally has his Shikai."

 _~Hmm, a constant-release Zanpakuto. That's rare.~_ Hime muttered.

"A constant-release? You mean the Zanpakuto stays in Shikai?" Akie asked, to which Hime nodded.

 _~They stay like this because of the strength of their wielders' spiritual power, or, more importantly, their lack of_ control _over it. To most if they intend to do this, they'll ended up keeling over from Reiatsu exhaustion. That buffoon should be lucky for his insane amount of Reiatsu or he won't be moving at all.~_

Akie sweat-dropped as she turned back to the basement below. Well, at least he got it... Hopefully, he doesn't get himself killed before they could even set foot in Soul Society.

 **~X~**

Finally, the day has arrived for the infiltration. She'll admit, fighting Shadows, rescuing victims of a mass serial killer and fighting Shadow Selves seems like a walk in a park than invading the afterlife. She sighed as she stood in front of the shop, wearing a sleeve-less black hoodie with a white off-the-shoulder top, jean shorts and light-gold high-top sneakers. She had already sent text messages to her friends in Yasoinaba that she won't be coming over for summer vacation because she's spending it with Orihime and her friends.

She didn't tell them what happened here since they didn't need to be involve with this. They have their own lives to enjoy, no need for them to worry about her going to some Soul Society where everyone is dead but can still kill you.

If they ever hear about this, she's sure to have the longest scolding from them plus Uncle Dojima and Nanako.

"Oh, Amamiya-san! You're here!" Urahara chirped. "Come in! Everyone's here already!" She blinked. Wow, what time did they arrived? The sun isn't out yet! "Thank you for waiting, everyone! Now we have the whole team together!"

Maybe being late is worth it. She gets to see their amusing expressions. Ichigo with his mouth gaping open while pointing accusingly at her, Orihime beaming to the point that you could practically see sparkles around her, Chad... She couldn't tell with his bangs in the way, Ishida with his glasses nearly falling off his face.

Now that she's here, she could clearly see Ichigo's Zanpakuto spirit. A tall, lean-built, and stoic middle-aged man with pale skin, high cheekbones, stubble, and long ragged black hair with brown highlights. His attire consists of a tattered white dress shirt with an upturned collar and cuffs, black pants, low-heeled boots, and a long, amorphous black overcoat with a burgundy highlight that flares out into ragged ends. He wore brown-tinted, semi-transparent wraparound sunglasses.

From what she could tell, the man is... a stark contrast to his wielder. Calm and level-headed, not something you would find in someone as hot-headed as Ichigo. Something akin to those understanding uncles or respectable mentors. Is that what Ichigo wished for deep down inside? For someone to balance his hot temper?

The man just raised a brow before nodding to her, which she subtly nodded back. Hmm, seems like Hime told him about her seeing spirits.

"Why the hell are you here?!" Ichigo exclaimed.

This time, she raised a brow, "Why wouldn't I be here? All of you are here to save Rukia, right?"

"Of course we are! What else are we here for! A field trip?!" The junior shouted before pausing to realize something. "Wait, you still remember her?"

If anything, her brow got higher, "Of course I remember her. We always ate lunch together during lunch break. We even went shopping this one time. You okay there, Kurosaki-kun?"

Urahara then decided to cut in, "If I can explain, after a Shinigami returns back to Soul Society, every individual who made contact with said Shinigami have their memories wiped clean of ever seeing them. This is to make sure no one knows the existence of Shinigami and Hollows. Of course, there are some who have an immunity to it, as you can see here."

That explains why nobody remembers Rukia. Huh, then I'm not going crazy.

"But that doesn't explain why she's here! She doesn't even have powers to protect herself!" Ichigo shouted. "If she goes with us, there's no guarantee that she'll make it out in one piece! We won't be able to protect her or anything!"

Wow, he actually cares... In his own way.

 _~You brute! How dare you belittle someone you don't even comprehend!~_ Hime shouted and looks close to chopping him to bits while the man looks close to face-palming himself. Huh, the spirit does have a bit of Ichigo in him.

"Easy, Him. I got this." I whispered to her before turning to the ranting teen. "Kurosaki-kun, I appreciate your concern but unlike you, I have done something like this in the past before." This got everyone's attention. "Well, not the whole 'infiltrating the afterlife' thing but close. Compared to what we're gonna do now, what I did back then would be a walk in a park. So I can assure you I can take care of myself." Ichigo looks reluctant still which I smiled at as I patted him on the shoulder. "By the way, what's the name of your Zanpakuto?" Noticing his confused expression, she added, "Urahara-san had been updating me about the Shinigami and such, including how you ended up losing your powers."

This, of course, set Ichigo off as he shouted at the shopkeeper. She sighed. That boy really needs to learn to have a cool head.

 _~Zangetsu.~_ A gruff voice spoke. She turned to the man, now dubbed Zangetsu. _~That is my name, miss.~_

She smiled, "Amamiya Akie, if you would. And it's nice to meet you too, Zangetsu."

After the little episode, Urahara then opened a Senkaimon, World Penetration Gateway, to Soul Society using a strange device. Then he warned us that we have to run like our life depends on it and we have less than 5 minutes to get to the other side or we'll be trapped forever. Not hard to do, considering the amount of running she had to do back in the TV World just to get away from hordes of Shadows coming after them.

The last thought she had though as they jumped into the strange gateway was that Soul Society, or specifically Seireitei... is going to be a zoo of Zanpakuto spirits, right?

* * *

 **Okay, I know Rukia has lost all of her Shinigami powers and Urahara gave her a Gigai that prevents the development of the Hogyoku, thus rendering her unblae to rebuild. But Zanpakuto Spirits are still a part of you, your soul, so they definitely should not have disappeared unless you rip them out directly like Muramasa did.**

 **Also the reason why the Zanpakuto spirits didn't comment on her Personas is because they cannot see them. The Personas are still in her mind but can move around freely if in corporal form so unless she directly summons them to their solid forms, Shinigami, spiritually aware people and Zanpakuto Spirits cannot see them.**


	3. Chapter 3

~Chapter 3: Thou Art I, And I am Thou~

She can safely say that Soul Society is definitely not what she expected. From Urahara's descriptions, Soul Society was supposed to be a paradise for Souls, maybe something akin to Nanako's dungeon, minus the Shadows and the Kunino-Sagiri. But turns out that it's pretty much a world on its own.

From what she had seen as they flew down from the Reishihenkanki after being chased by the Kōtotsu, the Soul Society equivalent to a street sweeper, it consisted of a circular castle/city-like structure in the middle with many, many, many villages surrounding it. Once they painfully landed in a nearby village just outside the castle-like building, she noticed the houses looked to be an exact replica of those back in the feudal Japan era. Though thinking back at the device Urahara had shown her before (the Denreishinki, was it? The one that looks like a flip phone?), she doubted they were technologically-deprived.

"So where are we?" Orihime asked as Akie helped her off the ground.

"This, is Rukongai. When Shinigami guide Pluses to the Soul Society, this is where they come to live. There are some people that are even born here. The place we're looking for is known as the Seireitei, where all the Shinigami live." The talking cat, Yoruichi, replied from his perch on Akie's shoulder.

The first time the blonde had met the cat, it was during her 'part-time job' at Urahara Shoten when she was observing Ichigo's training. At first she had thought he was a normal pet cat, until he started talking. From the perplexed look he had given her when she asked for his name, normal people would have been surprised or downright freak out that a cat was actually speaking human speech. But Akie is not like the normal folks; she had slayed countless Shadows, defeated gods, prevented the world from becoming a Shadow World, and had kicked the butt of a goddess hell bent of doing just that.

Besides, she had met Teddie, a Shadow in the form of a talking bear with (supposedly) nothing inside but was able to grow a blonde, blue-eyed Bishonen body in it. So a talking cat is nothing unusual, unless the cat is actually a human who can transform into a cat and is actually a woman. But what are the odds of that happening?

While she was busy checking out the area, Ichigo had decided to run off on his own after noticing a peculiar change in scenery ahead of them. That's when walls suddenly fell from who knows where and blocked his way.

'I knew things wouldn't be easy...' Akie groused when suddenly, a giant appeared in front of them.

Jidanbo, the Gatekeeper of the West Gate as he proclaimed, would not allow them to get through for it's his job as Gatekeeper to deny entrance to intruders. That much, she could understand, what she couldn't understand is why the carrot-head thought it was a good idea to force their way through using brute strength. She sighed at the bull-headedness of her junior as she and the others watched Ichigo battle it out with Jidanbo.

Much to her surprise (Maybe it should be expected?), Ichigo won. And the result was that Jidanbo allowed them permission to enter since Ichigo had also won him over.

'Seems to me, not everyone in Rukongai likes Shinigami if letting someone go is a form of utter compassion.' The blonde thought as the giant went to lift the gates up but stopped when they saw a figure walking casually towards them.

"Oya? Whatcha doing there?" The man asked with a smile.

'No... That's no smile...' Akie tensed as the silver-haired man walked even closer, that fox-like grin on his face remaining. It reminded her of the time when she exposed Adachi for the murderer he was.

"I was beaten in battle so I am letting them through." Jidanbo stuttered out.

The man shook his head, "Now that ain't right, if you loose you obviously ain't worth livin'!"

Akie blinked when she saw the gate was lowering before hearing Ichigo shout out, "JIDANBO!" as the man had stabbed through Jidanbo's arm.

"So why don' you close the gate and die outside?" He asked as he still smiled, he suddenly brought his sword up as Ichigo ran forward and swung his sword.

Both leapt away from each other. Akie and the group could only watch from where they stood while Yoruichi tried contemplating a plan to get that knucklehead out before he kills himself.

The blonde tensed even more as the man unsheathed his Zanpakuto and a surge of Reiatsu filled the air.

As if on auto-drive, her body moved towards Jidanbo and Ichigo while her mouth shouted, "Persona!"

 **~X~**

Ichigo couldn't even blink when he saw the silver-haired Shinigami released his Zanpakuto. All he saw was that the wakizashi had lengthen greatly once the release command was given and Akie was standing in front of him.

"Ho? That's a mighty fine trick ya have there." If possible, the man's grin widened -no, not a grin but a smirk- as he retracted his Zanpakuto back.

He blinked and turned to his senior who had her arms stretched outward as if stopping an invisible force. His eyes widened when he saw the faint figure of a red something before it faded completely.

"Sorry, but as his senior, I have to make sure he doesn't get himself killed." Akie said as she relaxed her posture but kept her guard up.

"Ah, ya his sister or something?"

She scoffed, "Sister? To him? I rather not have such a rambunctious little brother like him." Ignoring the indignant "Hey!" from said carrot-head, she continued. "Besides, he can whoop your ass anytime he wants if you weren't a sneaky deviant like the fox you are." She then took a moment to think, "Actually no, you're more of a slippery snake. Foxes are cute and cuddly, while you're not."

"Ooh, feisty." The man grinned widely. "But I have a job ta do so..."

Akie twitched before shouting in her mind, 'Rakukaja!' A softly-glowing shield appeared in front of her as the man released his sword once more, this time with more force. Enough to push her, Ichigo and Jidanbo away from the gate.

The man then aggravated her further by waving to them, "Bye bye." before the gates closed entirely.

'The next time I meet that snake, I'll sic Cerberus on him.' She seethed as the villagers all slowly appeared from their houses.

Yoruichi, who had stayed with the rest before Akie rushed in to protect Ichigo and Jidanbo, stared at the blonde girl as she talked with the village elder. The speed she had used to travel the relatively long distance between them and Ichigo, and the power she had used to protect them from a Zanpakuto. Granted, many would have think it's easy to block that simple attack but the Zanpakuto of the Third Division captain had earned its nickname "Hyapponzashi" for the extention held a tremendous force that could easily pierce through the toughest skin of a Hollow.

Yet, it was stopped by this human girl?

Then there was the fact that he heard her called out "Persona!". Is that the name of her power?

Kisuke had said that the girl is special and unique. He thought he was exaggerating but seeing it in person, he's a believer.

'What other secrets are you hiding, Amamiya Akie?'

 **~X~**

"Huh?! What do you mean not going?" Uryu demanded.

It was the next morning where we find our group in the village elder's home after resting there for the night. Last night, a peculiar guest who goes by the name of Shiba Ganju came charging in for a sort-of visit when he spotted Ichigo. Instantly, the two had a fight since Ganju hates Shinigami with a fiery passion while Ichigo hated how he kept badgering him about his hair colour.

Truthfully, Akie thinks that they just hated each other's guts.

After that, they were to have a fight when Ganju had to go back to wherever he's needed to be while promising Ichigo their fight this very morning, to which the stubborn carrot-head was adamant to keep.

"That's what I said. You four can just go on ahead without me. I'm staying here to finish my battle with that pinhead from yesterday." Ichigo said as he sat on the ground cross-legged.

"That's not an option! You're coming with us if I have to drag you myself!" Uryu grunted as he grabbed Ichigo's legs.

Ichigo was holding onto the floorboards to keep himself from being dragged off while Orihime and Chad came over to see what was going on.

"If I don't show up, he'll think I'm a chicken!" Ichigo said.

"Who cares what he thinks?" Uryu growled as he gave another tug.

"Hey, what's up? Aren't you three ready to go yet?" Orihime asked.

"Getting there, Orihime. Help…me…get…him…out of here!" Uryu yelled.

"Leave me alone! I'll beat that boar riding punk quick and catch up to you guys before-"

Yoruichi slashed his claws across Ichigo's nose, cutting his ranting off as blood fell from the cuts.

Akie sighed as Ichigo let out a loud wail of pain before heading outside to clear her head. Even then, she could still hear Yoruichi give the stubborn male a good dressing-down.

"Has so much blood gone to your head that you have forgotten our original purpose for coming to soul society?!" Yoruichi said.

Akie smiled as the cat lectured the male about their purpose for coming here before her mind wandered off somewhere. This mission reminded her of how she and the Investigation Team went into the TV World to rescue Nanako and catch Namatame Taro. Her heart clenched when she remembered that day; if they had came a second too late, Nanako would be...

"Akie-san?" Her thoughts were shattered as she turned to see Orihime. "We're heading off already."

"...Yeah."

 **~X~**

Akie had always thought that nothing could faze her after what she had been through but... She was proven very wrong.

'This, is where the person who is going to help us get into Seireitei lived?' She thought as the group stared at the house that has statues of arms holding up a red banner. 'Somehow I get the feeling them living out here is not of their own volition...'

At the same time, Ichigo was having trouble finding words to describe what he was seeing while Ishida, who was standing beside him, was stupefied at the sight of the house. Orihime was amazed and Chad was indifferent. The only one not fazed by this is Yoruichi who commented about the arm statues.

'Wow... So they changed the style every time...' Akie sweatdropped as they walked towards the house.

As the group reached the door, they heard a "Halt!" and two huge men jumped in front of the group; one was wearing blue and the other orange, other than that they looked exactly alike.

"Who are you people?!" The one wearing orange demanded.

"Such strange clothing you wear! And one of you is a Shinigami!" The one in blue said.

"Suspicious Strangers! I, Koganehiko and…" The one in yellow stopped halfway.

"I, Shiroganehiko…" The one in white continued after his brother.

"Can't not let you pass!" They shouted together, Ichigo growled in annoyance.

"Be gone from this place!" Kaganehiko shouted.

"Or you will die where you stand!" Shiroganehiko shouted.

"More ugly gate keepers? Soul Society is full of hassles!" Ichigo complained. Yoruichi came up from behind Ichigo and pointed to herself.

"Yoruichi-Dono!" The twins shouted.

Akie watched in amazement as the twins suddenly changed from tough men to respectful apologetic gentlemen as they led the Rukia rescue team into the house.

'This just got a whole lot weirder...' Akie thought.

"Downstairs as soon as you enter?! What kind of weird house is this?!" Ishida demanded as the group walked down the stairs.

"I wonder how you get to the other floors?" Orihime wondered.

"I wouldn't think too much if I were you, Orihime." Akie said as she patted her shoulder.

"Oh dear, we were so rude to you. We had no idea that you were companions of Yoruichi-dono!" exclaimed Koganehiko as he led everyone to a hallway with a shoji door.

"It's okay. I am partly to blame for not letting you know beforehand" explained Yoruichi.

"You're great and so thoughtful!" Koganehiko said as soon the group came to the door while Ichigo grumbled about being called companions, which Akie elbowed him for.

Koganeihiko stopped before the shogi screen, turned around and faced them, "Please wait a moment." Then, he knocked on the door. His reply was clapping. "Yes, right away, Master Kukaku."

Koganehiko then opened the doors, which led to a huge room. Sitting in the middle of the room was a very revealing women with long black hair.

"Long time no see, Yoruichi!" The women said.

At the sight of Ichigo opening his mouth to point out that Kukaku was a woman, she quickly covered it and whispered, "Don't even think about it." Ichigo just grumbled.

Kukaku eyed the group with a suspicious look before turning to the cat and whispered, "Who are the kids?"

Yoruichi replied, "They're the reason why I came today. I have a favor to ask of you, my old friend."

Kuukaku smirked. "You usually do that when you come here. Is it trouble?"

"Probably." Yoruichi answered.

If possible, the woman's smirk widened, "It's been a while since we talked like this too. Okay, let's hear it. I _love_ trouble."

 **~X~**

"I see. I think I understand the situation." She was silent for a moment as she smoked her pipe. "Alright, I accept."

"Really?"

"Yes, cause if Urahara is involved in this, I couldn't refuse even if I wanted to… However," Kukaku stood up. "While I trust you, Yoruichi… It doesn't mean that I trust these kids so as reassurance, I am sending one of my underlings with you." Akie blinked, thinking that was easy enough. "I call him a underling but he is my younger brother." She stood in front of the door and called out, "Hey, are you ready?"

A voice that sounded familiar to the group answered, "U-Uh huh, one moment!"

"I'm opening it, so be on your best behavior!"

"Understood." Kukaku opened the door to reveal the man they had run into at the Rukon elder's house. "A pleasure to meet you, my name is Ganju Shiba. Please think of me if you need anything." he looked up smiling.

Akie sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose, 'This is going to be a _long_ day...'

* * *

 **Sorry, if the chapter is shorter than normal...**

 **Okay, so the reason why I was away for so long is because of family issues. My dad was diagnosed with lung cancer and is about to undergo chemotherapy so I might not be able to update as soon as possible. For my 'Mafia and Magic', it's still one quarter done so it might take a while.**


End file.
